Device for separating improperly oriented articles



Ap 9 A. A. M ZOY-EIAL 2,398,320

DEVICE FOR SEPARATING IMPROPERLY ORIENTED ARTICLES Filed Jun 16, 1-943 INVENTORS Abram A. McCoy BY Gastazre'L. Neumam Patented Apr. 9, 1946 A. .lllil ctltis gBdulder, .Giistav e L- N?!- maim, Den r, 01 ssi t te o Arms Company, Inc, Bridgeport, Conn, a corporation or Delaware ,4 n, iiiitdoiiria'tf, hates. o steeraallatl meansk ndeino par i ul rato apparatus r en b n ,t-theremwa1v of pro r y or ente ar icles and jerrules froman article feeding and deli eringgneans. 'W MParticular article; feeding. and delivering means =thosen to exemplify one embodiment of the invention and...illustra edv in the rawin i one typepfmautomatic hopper feed whichtisvusedextensively in the manufacture of ammunition componentslfnr feeding cartridgecases or bullet jackjets insubstantially all. stages of manufacture to machines for forming or shaping the components... ,o .i i

ypical oisuch component shapin machines is one adapted to. perform the operations .known as 'swagifigor bumping, whereinthe dome=shaped endgof a case .isrfialttenedh The cartridge-s case is first rtelescoped ontothend. of a mandrel and advancedth'ereby into. 5. fixed die. iwhileheld firmly in the. die by the/mandrel, a suitable hunter or swaging tool is driven hard against the oiiter waillhof the dom-shaped end of. the case. thereby fiattening'onswaginglthe head of thica'se against the end of the mandrel. At the. moment of imlla lihthe mandreland buntentoolsare kept apart omy bythe thicknessofmetal forming the head .llhev case. It follows, then that. if, during .the continuous, operation of themachine, a Caseis not delivered Iromthe feedmagazine onto the end of the mandrel, the tools will strike each other with theai'esult that either otbotli the mandrel or hunter will be chipped or broken. v

WJIhis contingency is n0t',-liowever,"limited' to swag vngporbumping machines, but eiiist's also in themachines whichperfori'iithe'pocketing and ha'dlrlgoperation's on the swage case"; moreover, inflthe pocketing and Heading machines; the tools used have profiles which are" gfollrid and polished with 'gi-eat accuraby, and hn'e are 'fiztiexh'lyeii; pensive; The destruction of these tools isn'ot only prohibitive from a; coststarfdp6int But also froma stand oint or; lost timerequird' to repair andaajust th newtoors; v s The most aer tion caiise or moi; ashp iii g t tt Qfi bs fit ial f 'lh f d g devicefs'to' contimiouslys pply properly oriented cases to the reciprocating mandrel, ave been made to oyereom this mamas? However, i

machine is constantly attended, the supply of cases tothe mandrelis soon. exhausted whereupon the mandreland pocketing orswagingitoolicollide.

matically detect improperly orientedarticles and toedirlect such articles fromrafeedmagazine. A further object is to provide a cartridge'casefeeding magazine, with means for automatically withdrawing inverted casesfrom the feed track to the magazine and enabling the unretarded passage of properly oriented oases. o r Other.objectaifeatures. and advantages: of e the invention will be more specifically described in the following specification.

Inthedrawing: v 1 it I Fig. lis a diagrammatic sideelevationpartly insection of a cartridge caseheadingl and pocketingmachine equipped withthe inverted case detecting and removing means of. this invention; Fig.2isa fragmentary plan view of the detectingmeansshowninFig. 1.

Fig.3 is a side elevationv partl .in section.of the unit comprising the cartridge magazineand inverted case detecting and, removing-means. ,Fig. 4 is a front elevation on line" 4-4 of Fig.3.

, Referring to the drawing the heading hand pocketingzmachine shown in Figwl comprises a channel-shaped. base In having vertical side walls {I provided with ways J2 ontheir upperfledges. Suitably journaled at each end ofthebase are rotating rankshafts l3,,. l3" drivenrby suitable means, not shown, and connected ,bypitmans 14, UV to reciprocating -heads or gates lt5,-I5f slidingly supported on the ways J2. The head I5 is shown provided withan. appropriatestool, in this instance a mandrel I 6,. fixedly seoured in the head of .anoutside diameter comparable to the inside diameter of a. cartridge case. The head or gate l5'is shown equipped with apocketing tool H which comprises a stem having .a relatively small concentric teat |'I projecting from the end thereof,, ,The teat may bean .inte gral part of the stem or' a separate element suitably secured. thereto and comprises. anvaccu-v ratel shaped highly polishedmound, nose :stud having substantially the prescribed dimensions of the primer pocket in the cartridge case head.

The mandrel l6 and the pocketing punch I! are reciprocated by their respective heads l5, l in axial alignment and longitudinally of the base l0.

Fixedly secured to the walls ll of the machine between-the heads l5, i5 is a die supporting member l8 comprising a substantially rectangular block havinglaterally extending flanges l9, see Figs. 2'and 3, adapted to be bolted to'the ways l2. The upper surface of the block com-- prises a V-shapedtrough 2D and a transverse" die holding web 2! which, as shownrin Fig. 1, is provided with an aperture or drilled hole 22 in axial alignment with the mandrel l6 and pocketing punch I1 for supporting a suitable die 23. The latter is held in" the hole 22 by means of a set screw or bolt 24 fixedly secured in the web 2| of the supporting member l8.

Th structure thus far described-exemplifies a well known type of cartridge case pocketing machine adapted to illustrate the present invention but forms no part thereof; moreover, it will be understood that the present "invention is not limited thereby.

The cartridge case magazineand inverted ease detecting and removing device of this invention is indicated in general by the unit 25'.

'I'hemagazine comprises a substantially rectangular casting-or block 26, the front wall or face of which is formed-with a sinuoussurface 21, see Figs. 3 and 4, the upper end of which terminates .in alip 28 of a table top or'platform '29 which constitutes the top of the block 26.

Suitably formedon' the oppositesides of the block at its lower end are a pair of side plates 36,the front vertical edges of which form shoulders. 32 which extend forwardly beyond the lower end of the sinuous surface 21. Formed at the upper endof the block 26 and on opposite sides thereof are a second pair of somewhat similar plates 33, 33. 1

As shown, the plates 33, 33' constitute the lower extremities of vertical laterally offset walls 34, 34', the vertical edges 35, 35"of which form shoulders in the vertical plane of the shoulders 32. The walls 34, 34' extend rearwardly of the rear wall of the block 26 and are connected by an integrally formed rectangular shelf 36, the upper surface of which lies 'in the horizontal plane of the table top 29 of the block 26 and forms, in effect, an extension of the table top.

The shoulders 32 of the lower plates and the shoulders 35, of the upper wall members 34, 34 constitute abutments adapted to be engaged by the vertical edges 38 of a cover plate 39 which is suitably secured to the wall members 34, 34' by bolts 42, see Fig. 1, which pass through drilled holes 43 in the upper end of the cover 'at'each side thereof and are threadedlysecured'in suit able holes in the shoulders 35, 35". The cover plate is provided with a sinuous surface com plementing the sinuous surface 21 of the block 26, but spaced therefrom uniformly at a distance slightly greater than the outside diameter of a cartridge case. In their assembled relationship, the sinuous surface 21 of the block 26 and the sinuous surface 40 of the cover plate 39 thus form a magazine comprising a sinuous closed passage 44.

Suitabl formed vertically in the left hand offset wall 34, as'seen in Figs. 3 and 4, is an arcuate slot or aperture 45 located adjacent the rear of the platform 29. The lower arcuate closed end of the slot is substantially in axial alignment with a hole 46 drilled horizontally in of'the table top.

The hole 46 of the wall 34 is of such'diameter as to receive the lower end 41 of a well known type of flexible feed tube, the latterbeing connected at its upper end to an automati feed hopper, indicated generally at 48, The location of the hole 46 in the wall 34 is such that the inside wall ofthe lower end of the feed tube is supported substantially flush with the upper surface ;of the table top. A paddle wheel type of hopper is shown in the drawin but it will be understood that a pin-wheel hopper or a hopper'of any other suitable type may be used.

Suitable means for detecting and removing inverted cases which have been fed onto the table 29 of the magazine'from the feed-tube 41 is indicatedgenerally at 49 and comprises a -U -shaped wire member, one; arm 50 of which extends into and through the slot 45 of the 'wall 34, the length of the arm beingsuch that itsend 5| is at a predetermined distance from the "opposite side or wall 34' of the table, which distancei's slightly greater than the length ofa normal cartridge case.

The arm 50 is shown supported in'the s1'0t'45 by means of the second arm 52'of the U-shaped member, the arm 52' being rotatably mounted in the wall 34. To this end, a semicylindrical slot 53 is formed in the upper edge of the wall 34 to provide a bearing for the end of the arm" 52,-the latter being held in the bearing slot 53 by the complementary bearing surface 53"of a bracket 54 which isshown bolted to the upper edge of the side 34. A collar-55 is provided on the arm 52 spaced from. the end thereof, as shownj-and welded thereto so as to form a shoulder which abuts the outer face'of the wall 34 to prevent displacement of the -U-shaped 'wire'member to the right, as seen in Fig. 4. 1

Suitable means are provided at the extreme end of the arm. 52 for closing the slot or aper ture 45 whenever the arm 59 0f the U-shaped wire is displaced from its normal position, the normal position of the arm or wire 50-being that position in which'the end 5| of the wire is oppo site the mouth of and in longitudinal alignment with the feed tube, and comprises a substantially quadrant shaped target plate 56 welded'to the end of the arm 52,: as at 56', in closely spaced parallelrelationship 'to the inner side of the Wall 34. In the normal position of the arm 50,"the forward edge 51- of the quadrant uncovers the slot 45, but, whenever the arm Wis-displaced from its normal position which is accomplished bylrotating the arm 52 counterclockwise in its bearing, the target plate 55,swings across the slot 45 so as-tocover it for the purpose-hereinafter described. The arm 50 is effectivelyheld in its normal position inthe slot byesuitable means comprising a pin 58 which :is-secured to the wall 34 and adapted to engage a notch 59 in the periphery of the quadrant when the latter is swung back into its retracted position. a The length and diameter of the arm 50 are suitably chosen so that when an improperly oriented or inverted case is fed across the table from the feed tube 41, its open endwlll slide freely over the end 51' of the arm; and thereafter the forceexerted.against'the .rear .or-closed end of the inverted case by :the column *of cases :in the feed tube-41 will be'sufficientztozpush .theinverted'case its full length .onto thearm- E'O. The inverted caseis thus directed andzremove'd from the path of the succeeding cases being .fed from the tube 4'. so that these cases are not blocked from'movement, into the magazine 4G. Those cases wvhich are properly oriented, that is to say,

which are fed onto the table closed end first, are stepped by the end 5i of arm 59 and thereafter positively fed or, pushed forward in-a path at substantially right-angles to the :feed tube 41 over the lip 28 of the'table into themouth of the magazine M. 1 v H i Suitable means for positively feeding the cases along the table into the magazine 44 from their position on the table in engagement with the end 5| of the arm 50 may comprise the usual type of resilient pushing device, an exemplary embodiment of which is indicated generally .at 6|] in Figs. 2 and 3.

The'unit 25 is adapted to be supported in the machine so that the lower end of the magazine 44 will be positioned immediately above the center of the V-shaped surface 20 and in longitudinal alignment with the mandrel I6 and die 23.

Suitable supporting means for the unit may comprise, as shown, a horizontally disposed U- shaped bracket 6|, the lower leg 62 of which is bolted to a flange 19 of the bracket l8, as shown in Fig. 2. The upper leg 63 of the bracket is finished on its upper surface to slidably support the aforementioned pusher 6B. In addition, a rectangular notch 64 is formed in its forward edge to provide a seat for the shelf portion 36 of the table.

The vertical face 65 of the bracket is provided with a threaded hole 66 which is adapted to accommodate the threaded end of a headed bolt 61 which is engaged in a countcrbored hole 68 in the block 26 of the unit 25. By turning up the bolt 61, the unit 25 may be drawn tightly against the bracket GI and thus fixedly held in position.

As pointed out above, the essential requirement of any automatic feed means for heading and pocketing machines is a constant and uninterrupted flow of properly oriented cases to the reciprocating mandrel and punch.

In accordance with the present invention. as cases are fed from the hopper 48 by the feed tube 41 onto the table 29, each case is pushed across the table into engagement with the end 51 of the detecting and removing wire 5!). If a case is properly oriented, its closed end strikes the end 5! of the wire so that further movement of the case in this direction is stopped. Thereafter the pusher device 60 advances the case along the table in a direction at right angles to the feed tube over the lip 28 into the magazine M from which the case is automatically fed to the reciprocating mandrel l6. When, however, a case is delivered onto the table open end first, its open end telescopes onto the end 5| of the Wire 55, and, as the succeeding cases in the feed urge the inverted case forward, it slides its full length onto the wire 50, as indicated by the dotted line position of the case in Fig. 4. It will be evident, therefore, that in this manner the inverted case is effectively directed and removed from the path of the succeeding cases.

Whenever an attendant discovers the inverted case on the wire 5!], he is enabled to remove the case simply by grasping the arm 50 or the case thereon and swinging the arm upwardly in its pusher 6:1 and fed into the magazine :5- in the usual mannersothat the continuous flow of cases .fromthe fee'd tub'eto the magazine thus continues uninterruptedly'.

By equippingcartridge case pocketing, head ingand swa'gingimacnines- With'th'e inverted ca's'e' removing means of this invention, manual feeding and constant supervision of the machines may be eliminated and a positive uninterrupted flow of prope'rly oriented cases to the tools insured.

What is claimed is:

1. In a device for feeding tubular articles having an open end and a closed end to article forming means, the combination with a feed tube; of a magazine having an aperture adjacent the discharged end of said tube, said magazine being adapted to receive articles being delivered.

from said feed tube closed end first and to deliver said articles to said forming means; a wire on said magazine opposite said aperture extending longitudinally in the path of articles being discharged from said feed tube for engaging the closed end of an article to direct the path of such article into said magazine and for engaging the open end of an article when said open end is foremost to direct such article from said magazine into said aperture, said wire being displaceable with respect to said aperture to remove an article therefrom; and means carried by said wire to cover said aperture when said wire is displaced.

2. A device for separating cartridge cases comprising feeding means; a magazine having an aperture in axial alignment with the discharge port of said feeding means, said magazine being adapted to receive cases which are discharged closed end first from said port; a wire in said aperture in the path of cases being discharged from said port having aportion adapted to engage in the open end of an inverted case being fed to said magazine to conduct such article into said aperture, said wire being displaceable from said aperture to remove a case therefrom; and means actuated simultaneously by displacement of said wire to cover said aperture to prevent the escape of cases from said magazine.

3. An article feeding and separating device for articles having an open end and a closed end comprising a feed chute; a magazine adjacent the lower end of said chute, said magazine comprising a table for receiving articles discharged from said chute; feed means constructed and arranged to engage an article on said table and move the article across said table in a path at substantially right ngles to the path of discharge from said chute; an article separating wire mounted on said magazine normally in axial alignment with the path of articles being discharged from said chute and constituting an unsupported portion of greater length than the length of an rticle and of less diameter such that an article delivered open end first onto said table will telescope freely onto said wire and thereby automatically move entirely ofi of said table out of the path of saidfeed means and the succeeding articles being delivered onto said table; stop means on said table; and means carried by said wire adapted normally to engage said stop means to hold said wirein axial alignment with the articles being delivered from said chute.v

' 4. An article feeding and separating device for articles having an open end and a closed end comprising a feed chute; a magazine adjacent the lower end of said chute for receiving articles discharged therefrom; a U-shaped .wire pivotally mounted by one leg on said magazine, the second leg of said U-shaped wire extending normally in axial alignment with the path of articles being discharged from said chute to enable an article being delivered open end first to telescope onto said second leg and thereby to be-removed from said magazine, said second leg being adapted to constitute a relatively fixed stop to be engaged by articles being discharged closed end first from said chute to retain such articles in said magazine, said second leg being displaceable out of alignment with said chute for removing the telescoped article therefrom; and a'targetplate carried on the first leg or said U-shaped wire and adapted'to be moved into the path of articles being discharged from said chute, when said first leg has been displaced from its normal position for removal of a telescoped article therefrom, to retain articles in said magazine. 7

ABRAM A. MCCOY. GUSTAVE L; NEUMANN. I 

